Cola di Rienzo

Cola di Rienzo (1313-8 October 1354) was a Tribune of Rome who led a revolt against the Papal States during the mid-14th century. Di Rienzo's goal was to end the temporal power of the Pope and to unify Italy, but he was lynched in 1354.

Biography
Cola di Rienzo was born in Rome in 1313 of humble origins, and he became a notary in the city. He swore to obtain justice for the death of his young brother at the hands of a noble, and he won the favor of Pope Clement VI in Avignon. From 1344 to 1347, he gathered a band of followers who sought to restore Rome to its former position of power, and his force of revolutionaries seized power in Rome on 20 May 1347, forcing the city's nobles to flee or go into hiding. He took the title of Tribune and governed the city with stern justice, with the poet Petrarch comparing him to Romulus, Lucius Junius Brutus, and Marcus Furius Camillus, the founders of Rome. Cola di Rienzo also attempted to unify Italy as one country, opposing the Holy Roman Empire's meddling in Italian affairs. His vanity, inexperience of mankind, unsteadiness, and physical timidity led to many forgetting his knowledge, eloquence, and enthusiasm for ideal excellence, and the barons decided to rebel against him. With aid from Louis I of Hungary, Cola di Rienzo was able to defeat the barons at Porta San Lorenzo, during which his chief rival, Stefano Colonna, was killed. On 15 December 1347, however, a slight disturbance caused by the Pope caused Cola di Rienzo to abdicate and flee from Rome. He lived in Naples and in an Italian mountain monastery during his years in exile, and he journeyed to Prague in the Holy Roman Empire in 1350. Despite appealing to Emperor Charles IV to free Italy of Papal oppression, Cola di Rienzo was imprisoned at Raudnitz, and he was handed over to Pope Clement. Petrarch unsuccessfully appealed for his release, but Cola di Rienzo was freed and made a Senator by Pope Innocent VI, who shared his desire to free Rome from the corrupt rule of the barons. In August 1354, Cola di Rienzo returned to Rome and regained his former position of power, and he vainly besieged the fortress of Palestrina. He lost the favor of the people after having the mercenary Fra Moriale executed, and he attempted to address the people in October. However, the people set his building on fire and lynched him, tragically putting an end to Cola, who would become a hero and role model for later Italian nationalists.